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Nellis is a major training location for both US and foreign fighter aircraft pilots. The base is named for William Harrell Nellis , a Las Vegas resident and P-47 pilot who died in action during the Battle of the Bulge.
The main base covers approximately 11,300 acres (46 km˛). 62 percent of it is undeveloped, while the remaining area is either paved or contains structures.
The base consist of three major functional areas.
The history of the base began with a survey in October 1940 by Major David M. Schlatter of the Army Air Corps, who examined various sites in the Southwest looking for a location for an aerial gunnery school. Las Vegas was attractive for its clear weather and year-round flying, and the then-impoverished city was eager for a military base. On 2 January 1941, the city bought an airstrip run by Western Air Express and leased it to the Air Corps three days later, the plan being to use the strip for both military and civilian aircraft.
Construction of the "Las Vegas Army Air Field" began in March 1941; the first commander, Colonel Martinus Stenseth , arrived in May. Much of the early gunnery training, originally set to begin in September, but not underway until January 1942, used machine guns mounted in trucks and targets on railroad cars, used to accustom students to firing at a moving target. World War II made the base's mission especially urgent, and by the end of 1942, 9,117 gunners had graduated, with aircraft in use including Martin B-10The Martin B-10 was the first all-metal monoplane bomber to go into regular use by the US Army, entering service in June 1934. It was also the first mass-produced bomber whose performance was superior to that of the Army's pursuit aircraft of the time.s, AT-6s, A-33 s, B-17 Flying FortressThe B-17 Flying Fortress was the first mass-produced, four-engine heavy bomber. It is still one of the most recognised aeroplanes ever built. It was most widely used for daylight strategic bombings of German industrial targets during World War II as partes, B-24 LiberatorThe Consolidated B-24 Liberator was produced in greater numbers than any other American combat aircraft, and was used by most of the Allied air forces in World War Two. Designed as a heavy bomber, it served with distinction not only in that role, but alsos, and B-26 MarauderThe B-26 Marauder was a twin-engine medium bomber of the Second World War. 5,157 were produced between 1941 February and 1945 March; 522 of these were flown by the Royal Air Force and the South African Air Force. It was used in both the European and Pacifs.
At the height of training in 19431943 is the common year starting on Friday. Events January January 4 End of term for Culbert Olson, 29th Governor of California. He is succeeded by Earl Warren. January 11 The United States and United Kingdom give up territorial rights in China. January 1 and 1944Events World War II January January 4 The Battle of Monte Cassino begins. January 5 Murder of Danish playwright Kaj Munck January 17 British forces, in Italy, cross the Garigliano River. January 20 The Royal Air Force drops 2,300 tons of bombs on Berlin;, over 15,000 men and women were at the base. Actors Ronald ReaganRonald Wilson Reagan ( February 6, 1911 June 5, 2004) was the 40th ( 1981 1989) President of the United States and the 33rd ( 1967 1975) Governor of California. Reagan was also an actor in films before entering politics. Early life and career Reagan was b and Burgess Meredith came to help produce the propaganda film Rear Gunner . Much of the training was for B-17 gunners, then at the beginning of 1945 emphasis shifted to the B-29 Superfortress. An innovation was the use of a specially-designed target aircraft, the RP-63 , which was sufficiently armored to be shot at with frangible bullets. At war's end, the school had trained over 45,000 B-17 gunners, and over 3,000 for the B-29.
The gunnery school closed in September 1945, and the base itself was officially inactivated in January 1947. It was reactivated by the newly-created United States Air Force in March 1948, who organized an advanced single-engine school. The first Air Force Gunnery Meet was held at the base on 2 May 1949, with competitors from 14 Air Force units, flying both prop and jet aircraft.
The base was renamed Nellis Air Force Base on 30 April 1950. Shortly thereafter the base was again needed to prepare pilots for the Korean War, first with F-51 Mustang training, and then with F-80s and F-86 Sabres. The base also became a part of testing programs for new aircraft.
The Thunderbirds came to Nellis in 1956 (where they are still based as of 2004), along with F-100 Super Sabres. The F-105 Thunderchief arrived in 1960; in June 1962, two crashes in one day at Nellis forced the grounding of all 105s for evaluation and modifications.
In 1966 the Tactical Fighter Weapons Center was established to unify the research and training functions of the base, and in 1969 the last F-100s were retired.
In 1969 the 57th Fighter Wing was activated to start the USAF Weapons school. It provides to this day graduate level training on all fighter weapons that a USAF officers would be expected to utilize. This includes air to air combat with both gun and missiles; and air to ground combat. The graduates are also given basic courses in fighter system maintenance in particular how to tell if a system is installed wrong during the pre-flight walk around.
This school was created in response to lessons learned from air to air combat in Vietnam, and is similar to the US Navy's Fighter Weapons school.
Housing shortages had been a perennial problem for the base, but in the early 1970s Las Vegas' growth resulted in a new problem, with residential areas beginning to encroach on the flight paths. Although the problem was handled by modifying operations, the issue continues to plague both Nellis and Las Vegas planners.
Lessons from the Vietnam War led to the establishment of RED FLAG exercise s at Nellis, with pilots flying F-5s according to the doctrines of possible enemy forces, and engaging in mock dogfights with the trainees. This program grew to include pilots from dozens of different nations.
Continuing with the trend of competitive training, in 1981 the ten-day Gunsmoke '81 was the first gunnery meet to be held since 1962, and featured teams from all over the world. The event would continue to be held every two years. The 1980s were a busy time for Nellis, with a dozen types of aircraft being supported, as well as visiting aircraft from the Army, Navy, and foreign nations. In 1988 the F-117 Nighthawk was unveiled here; it had been developed and tested at the Tonopah Test Range, a smaller facility in the northern part of the nearby Nellis Air Force Range in the desert northwest of Las Vegas.
On January 14, 2003, the first production F/A-22 was delivered to the base. Nellis Air Force Base is selected as the F-22 Force Development Evaluation program and Weapons School.